World War II Historical Places in Bataan

HISTORICAL PLACES

The Battle of Bataan represented the most intense phase of Imperial Japan’s invasion of the Philippines during World War II. It left a lot of memories which are commemorated in the areas where they took place:

Shrine of Valor

Photo from: flickriver.com

Shrine of Valor, a memorial shrine complex built to honor and remember the gallantry of the Filipino and American soldiers who fought during World War II. The white Memorial Cross stands as a remembrance to the soldiers who fought and lost their lives in the Battle of Bataan. From the colonnade and the cross, one can view Bataan, Corregidor Island and on a clear day, the city of Manila. The shrine complex also includes a war museum with a wide array of collections from paintings of the Philippine heroes to armaments used by the American, Filipino and Japanese forces in the heat of the battle.

Death March Marker

Photo from: trekearth.com

Zero Kilometer Death March Marker – Starting point of the infamous Death March. Marked the start of the March of Death of the American and Filipino Soldiers in 1942, going to Camp O’ Donnell in Capas, Tarlac. It is believed that an estimated 5,000 to 10,000 Filipinos died in this historic march.

The Death March of Filipino and American prisoners of war from Mariveles and Bagac to Camp O’ Donnell, Capas, Tarlac, April 1942. Immediately after the fall of Bataan on April 9, 1942, the US Filipino forces were executed by the Japanese from the Field of Battle as Prisoners of War. The more than 70,000 Filipino and American Troops who had survived the battle of Bataan underwent in this evacuation, the ordeal that history now knows as the death march.

Dambana ng Kagitingan

Photo from: kwentuhero.multiply.com

On April 9, 1942, approximately 75,000 Filipino and United States soldiers, commanded by Major General Edward “Ned” P. King, Jr., formally surrendered to the Japanese army under Lt. General Masaharu Homma. Over the next few days, these prisoners of war were transferred to Camp O’Donnell in what would become the Bataan Death March.

To commemorate the gallantry of these troops, April 9 of every year was declared Araw ng Kagitingan. The Dambana ng Kagitingan (Shrine of Valor) was also built on top of Mount Samat in 1966 in memory of the soldiers who saw action during the Second World War. Read More: ivanhenares.com